Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Top Questions

Greek is very popular. They have all of the parties, etc. Football and basketball are hugely popular to watch. I'm on the Equestrian Team, which is an intercollegiate riding team. We compete against schools in our region, like College of Charleston, Emory, Georgia Southern, etc. We also have social outings, like dinners and weekends where we go trail riding and camping. It's a lot of fun. Some students leave their doors open in the dorms. Athletic events, especially football, are very very popular. Lots of alumni come back, and undergrad tickets sell out rather quickly. Guest speakers and seminars are very common, and turn out is almost always very high. The dating scene is interesting. Many couples come from living in the same dorm (a few co-ed dorms). Lots of fraternities and sororities have date nights, and some couples are born that way. Being female, I haven't really had a problem meeting guys or dating if I wanted to. My closest friends are from the Honors Program. We all live together in the Honors dorm. If I were awake at 2 am on a Tuesday, I'd either be spending time talking with my boyfriend or doing homework. Possibly watching a movie. Homecoming, Freshman Cake Race, RAT caps, the traditions are numerous. People party pretty often, but it's most common in the fraternities and sororities. Last weekend, I spent time with some friends and prepared to go home for spring break. I also went to a fraternity and hung out for a bit. Staying in and watching a movie or playing games on a Saturday night is always fun. Off campus, I usually go out to eat or shop at a place like Lenox Mall or Little Five Points. Atlantic Stations is also a great place to go.

Greeks are the most publicized groups. Those are the "popular" kids, I guess. But, anyone can be Greek. Just takes a little bit of confidence and some money, of course. Freshmen tend to do the open door thing, but after that, you've made your group of friends and you're probably not in your room that much, anyhow. Everyone goes to football games, and a lot of people go to basketball games if we're doing well. Baseball games are a here and there type event. We have a lot of "talks" and a couple big name speakers each year. There's usually a good turnout. Theatre is also hit or miss. Depends on the show. The dating scene... well, there are a lot of guys that stay in their rooms and play video games. There are socially awkward girls, too, though. A lot of people find The One. Almost everyone dates another student at one time or another, though. I met my closest friends by living in the dorms or through friends. If I'm awake at 2 AM on a Tuesday, I am studying for something the next day or I went out that night to a party. People definitely party on the weekends. You have to so you don't go crazy. Usually Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. But, if there's something to celebrate during the week, people will do that, too. It's all about time management. Get stuff done during the day so you can relax at night. Atlanta is full of stuff to do - music, theater, movies, shopping, art, parks, you name it! There are great restaurants, too.

Greek life is very popular on Georgia Tech's campus. I am involved with Alpha Gamma Delta as the Vice President of Member Development. It has taught me about leadership, organization, and professionalism. I believe that going Greek was one of the best choices I have made thus far in college. Almost all other student organizations are made up of Greeks. No, students do not usually leave their doors open. Football games are extremely popular, but basketball and baseball games are only mildly popular. Guest speakers and theater are not very popular. The dating scene for girls: "the odds are good, but the goods are odd." Because there is only one girl for every 4 guys, girls can easily find relationships, but guys have a harder time. However, many Tech guys are pretty weird and nerdy so that evens the playing field a bit. I have met all of my closes friends though my sorority. If I am awake at 2am on a Tuesday, I definitely have a test the next day or a major assignment due. People party every weekend usually, and sometimes on Thursdays. Greek life is a great way to get involved in not just a brotherhood or a sisterhood, but other campus activities as well. There is a huge Greek population and we are a very connected and close knit group. Last weekend I went to a popular Mexican restaurant right off campus with a few of my sister and by boyfriend's brothers and then back to someone's house for a party. I went to church, worked out, and did homework. On a Saturday night, you can go to the nearby Atlantic Station to shop, eat and watch a movie. You can also go to concerts or athletic events because the Georgia Dome is within walking distance and the Atlanta Brave's also play nearby. You can go to the Aquarium, malls, or even the student center to play pool and bowl.

Greek organizations are pretty common, although maybe not so much for a southern school. There are many organizations for students to get involved in, either through their major or through various campus social groups. Athletic events are somewhat popular, but the students don't generally care about the teams. The athletic events are something to do that everyone can get in to.

I personally had no problem with GT's social scene, but I went Greek. Now that I compare my social life at Tech with my friends who did not go Greek, I see a pretty stark divide. It's just a matter of making the best of what you have here. I had a lot of friends outside of my fraternity, but most of my closest friends were from my chapter. I went Greek in the first two weeks of my freshmen year so I was out of the dorm quite a bit, but the times I was there, everyone was very social and friendly. People were interested in getting to know each other, which I really liked. As for parties, it's very rare that a party will come knocking at your door. Either you have to create it yourself or seek it out. At least two or three fraternities had parties every weekend, but in four+ years at Georgia Tech I went to less than a dozen large on-campus dorm or apartment parties. There is a big neighborhood right off Tech campus comprising mostly off-campus housing for upperclassmen. There's usually a few smaller parties every weekend there. If you are 21 and you like going to bars, there are not many within walking distance of campus. Having a car to drive to social events is a requisite. There is a lot of drinking on campus. And by a lot I mean it's hard to find people who choose not to drink. I've heard Georgia Tech has a "binge drinking" problem, but I'm pretty sure every college campus has a "binge drinking" problem. That said, there are actually a good number of campus-sponsored events on weeknights and weekdays that don't involve drinking. Intramural sports is popular at Tech. The rest of the clubs have medium to low visibility on campus. Athletic events are fun -- being a Division 1A school, there is a huge emphasis on athletics, which I think a good bit (but not all) of the students took a liking to. Some students were completely apathetic to sporting events. The two biggest traditions here are Homecoming and Greek Week. Both are week-long events filled with friendly competitions, a parade, and a variety of campus-sponsored parties. Greek Week is just like Homecoming but reserved for the Greek community. Events like this were very fun for me, but had a hand in contributing to the ever-growing division between Greeks and non-Greeks at Tech. Georgia Tech does not take Homecoming as seriously as other universities. In fact, Homecoming is almost a non-event for a lot of people. Georgia Tech really benefits from its urban location in midtown Atlanta. The university did an excellent job of providing students with a relaxing, secluded atmosphere within a bustling metropolis. There is always something going on in Atlanta -- from live concerts to museum exhibits to shopping and sporting events -- and there was never a dull moment if you wanted to get away from your studies for a while.

Greek Life is huge on campus, so all the fraternities and sororities are big. Other popular groups are India Club, honor societies and service groups. I'm involved with a group called M&M mentoring and it involves upperclassmen mentoring underclassmen within their majors on what classes to take, what mistakes to avoid, what professors to take, etc. Students in dorms do leave their doors open. Football is very popular here along with basketball. Guest speakers are mildy popular and theater is very unpopular. The dating scene is HUGE and couples can be seen everywhere. I met my closest friends by joining my fraternity, Sigma Beta Rho. I'm usually studying or watching tv or hanging out with friends at 2 am. We have a pi mile run every year, we have greek week, homecoming, campus wide community service events, lock ins in the student center and gym. People party whenever they are free, so at least once a week. Fraternities and Sororities are very important on campus. I went to UGA last weekend for a cultural show. We can go see a play at the Fox, go out to eat, watch a movie, play sports, hang out and talk, play video games, study, explore Atlanta, go to the aquarium or park, or go to another college, such as Emory or Georgia State. We do everything offered to us off campus, we watch movies, eat out, meet friends at other schools, travel, road trip, etc.

One of largest groups on campus is CCF. However the group consitst of a large verity of the students on campus. Athletics are very popular for most students. Football and basketball are the most attended sports.

There are many clubs and groups around campus. I've been playing on a roller hockey team that operates as a club most every semester I went to school at Tech. I often see groups of people playing chess at the student center. There is an open-door policy which has great atmosphere among freshman halls. This is where I made my friends early on freshman year. At 2 am on really any night of the week, I was next door in my friend Andy's room, either watching a movie, eating, playing a game, or making smoothies, and often all of the above. Another way to do it is to join a fraternity. My freshman roommate did this, and I rarely saw him, but they let him move into the house the 2nd semester. People also commonly become best friends with the people among their major. There is often a distinction made between a drinking school and a party school. Tech is often referred to as the former. Rather than go to a party, we just host gatherings of "the usual crowd drinking." Whether you call it s small party or just hanging out, as we all turned 21, and had a house to ourselves rather than living in the dorms, these grew in frequency to about every other weekend among my group before the novelty eventually wore off. If your looking for a party, or a great place to rent a house while you go to school, Home Park (north of campus) is the place to be. Being at the Heart of Downtown Atlanta, there is no shortage of things for young people to do. Bars, Clubs, concerts, food, karaoke, professional sports games, whatever you want is at your disposal. Only being on the scene for a little over 4 years, its amazing I run into so many people I know in a place as large as Atlanta. Once I was at the Sweetwater Brewery, where I ran into a friend from Arch Studio. Later I was playing pool at some bar I'd never been to, and ran into the same guy! We once flagged down a friend driving who was driving on West Peachtree and a agreed on a place to go. Frequenting ska concerts, you meet the same types of people, and just last night we ran into someone we knew while eating at Mid City Cafe.

I'm part of SGA and this is an important group on campus that helps decide what happens around campus. People in the freshman dorms usually are most social than in the apartments. Athletic events are quite popular on campus but theater is not. The dating scene here is different because of the 3 to 1 ratio of guys to girls. The guys usually have more trouble finding girls than girls do because of the ratio. My closest friends were actually met at Freshman orientation. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday I'm usually studying for a test the next day or working on a project. People usually part on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Fraternities usually are the places that underclassmen party until they turn 21 and can go more around Atlanta. Last weekend I went to Piedmont park and studied outside for a few hours and went out the movies. On a Saturday night there are many restaurants of all different types around Atlanta and there is Atlantic Station that is 5 min away that has shopping and movie theater that is a good hangout spot. On campus I would probably just hang out with friends and watch movies inside or just socialize.

Greeks. People drink for fun - it's the weekend. People do math and write code for fun - it's not the weekend.